Longing for Pinoy Dishes after an All-American Thanksgiving Feast

After one week of eating left-over turkey ( casserole and soup) and leftover honey baked ham ( potato and ham souffle),  I had a longing for Pinoy dishes.

https://davidbkatague.blogspot.com/2019/11/no-pinoy-dishes-for-thanksgiving-this.html

My longing for Pinoy dishes was enhanced after viewing the food videos of Kulas in his vlog, Becomingfilipino.com(.http://www.becomingfilipino.com/ ).  Thus with great anticipation ( in spite of the rain )I went to our Pinoy Grocery store today. The following I purchased with gusto. 

Beef and Tripe Kare-Kare ( Panlasang Pinoy Photo)

Pancit Bihon

Ginisang Ampalaya( Bitter Melon)

Filipino Beef Steak

Puto Kutsinta for Dessert

In addition, I also purchased Shrimp Paste ( Bagoong-Barrio Fiesta brand), Hopia Baboy and  Pork Siopao. Total Cost: $80.00

For my favorite Pinoy and American Dishes visit:

https://myfavoritepinoydishes.blogspot.com/2019/11/my-own-version-of-left-over-turkey.html

For recipes of the above four dishes visit:

https://panlasangpinoy.com/

Meanwhile enjoy this video of Kulas on crispy pata from Marinduque- our second home

https://www.facebook.com/becomingfilipino/videos/516353962291066/

My Own Version of Left-Over Turkey Casserole

Left-over Turkey Casserole

I have been looking for an easy recipe for leftover turkey. Here's a recipe from the seasonedmom.com that I modified. 


Instead of frozen peas as listed in the Aunt Bees recipe below, I used french cut green beans and added cream style sweet corn along with cream of mushrooms soup. Instead of pasta, I used slice potatoes for the carbohydrates. For details of the recipe read:


https://www.theseasonedmom.com/aunt-bees-leftover-turkey-casserole/?fbclid=IwAR2nDOcr_f9UvcDjK0Eqy2ZGPJhtmT9V1AFj7QT_8utXf3VWaM7Z2ur12ow

 Meanwhile, enjoy Anton Rubenstein-Romance-one of our favorite piece of music

https://youtu.be/6xRiKw428iA

My Two Favorite Recipes for Tuna Sandwiches

Once in a while, Macrine and I loved to eat tuna sandwiches for lunch. My favorite recipe is: to mix the tuna with chopped Vidal sweet onions, chopped celery, sweet relish and a tint of mayonnaise and minced fresh oregano.

Here's my other favorite recipe without mayonnaise

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/202115/mayo-free-tuna-sandwich-filling/

Nutritionist recommends to eat less tuna but more sardines, since tuna usually contained more mercury and other metal contaminants compared to sardines.

Do you have a favorite tuna sandwich recipe? Please share!

Meanwhile, enjoy this photo of our recent breakfast:

Mangoes Anyone?

Sardines and Scrambled Eggs for Breakfast

Yesterday, Macrine and I had Tome' Sardines, scrambled eggs and fried rice for breakfast.  We have not eaten sardines for quite a while, so the taste of sardines followed by Papaya from Mexico (Maradol) was a gastronomic delight.

Mexican Papaya( Maradol) is not as sweet as Philippines Papayas, but it is much cheaper here in Northern California and available all year round.

The breakfast was prepared by Macrine's caretaker- a Filipino-American who also like sardines. The above brand of sardines is in olive oil with pickle flavor and pepper. I purchased it at our local Pinoy grocery store.   I like canned sardines in olive oil and a little bit spicy instead of in tomato sauce or in water.

The name “sardine” refers to more than twenty types of small, oily, saltwater fish in the herring family. They may be eaten fresh or preserved.  Sardines are incredibly nutritious. For just one tin of Atlantic sardines (3.75 ounces, at about 191 calories), you get about 23g of protein, 10.53g of healthy fats (rich in omega-3 fatty acids), as well as vitamin D and tons of vitamin B12, not to mention a long list of other vitamins and minerals. Moreover, sardines are relatively low in contaminants such as mercury. For canned sardines, look for those packed in water or olive oil. For more details read:

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/encyclopedia/food/sardines 

For top 10 rated sardines for 2019 read:

https://www.foodsharkmarfa.com/best-canned-sardines/ 

Meanwhile, enjoy this photo from my recent breakfast

Mangoes Anyone?

Macrine's Favorite Lunch and Other Pinoy Dishes

This is Macrine's Favorite lunch-Fish Taco Garnished with Cactus and Tomatoes salad.

Macrine enjoying her fish taco with cactus/tomato salad and  a dash of  mild Picante sauce

Her second choice of lunch is lengua ( beef tongue)* taco. Both tacos we purchased at our nearby Mexican restaurant- Tres Hermanos. On Tuesday the lengua taco is on sale for only $1.99 each. However, the fish taco is always $2.97 each all week.

There are several good Mexican Restaurants within 10 miles distance from our residence. As a promotion to attract more customers,our Bath lady informed us that on Wednesday, the tacos are only $1 in Elk Grove- about 30 minutes drive from our residence. Tres Hermanos is very popular. On weekdays from 11AM to 1PM, the waiting line to be served is about 15 minutes. The food however is excellent and worth the wait.

* Speaking of beef tongue( lengua), my favorite recipe in the Philippines is lengua Estofado

Lengua Estofado- one of my  favorite Pinoy dishes for special occasion

For the recipe visit :https://recipenijuan.com/lengua-estofado-recipe/

For other Mexican dishes that Macrine and I also enjoy visit this site:

https://myfavoritepinoydishes.blogspot.com/2018/11/enjoying-mexican-food-beef-tamales.html

For My Favorite Filipino Dishes read:

https://hubpages.com/food/my-favorite-philippine-dishes

For Angela's Dimayuga 10 Essential Pinoy Recipes as Published in the NY Times read:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/07/dining/filipino-food-recipes-angela-dimayuga.html?searchResultPosition=2

I feel like Cooking Oyster Rockefeller Today

Today is not a special day such as my birthday or Mother's day. I just feel like cooking a special dish to celebrate being alive and without lingering pains in my octogenarian body. Thank you Lord for this day!

Oyster Rockefeller is one of my favorite dish to cook. With the availability of fresh oysters, it is an easy recipe.

I used spinach, Parmesan cheese, onions, garlic, olive oil, parsley and bread crumbs as the ingredients. Sometimes I add bacon/mushrooms/shrimps(Bienville)*, If I have it in my refrigerator.  My recipe is similar to this recipe.

https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/oysters-rockefeller/  

For other ways of preparing oysters visit the following site:

https://www.foodandwine.com/blogs/raw-rockefeller-9-essential-oyster-preparations

*Origin of Oyster Rockefeller and Oyster Bienville

Oysters Rockefeller, according to legend, were created about in New Orleans. They were invented to mark the occasion of a visit by industrialist John D. Rockefeller to the Crescent City.

Oysters Bienville, on the other hand, also comes to us from New Orleans. It was named in honor of an early governor Louisiana, Jean de Baptiste Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville.

These two are very elegant dishes . They are the epitome of style and sophistication and the very embodiment of living the good life.

An Easy Recipe for Baked Okra

I planted Okra in my garden this year. The following photo is my 4th harvest this year. I usually cooked the okra by just steaming it and then sauteed with butter and shrimp paste ( bago-ong) with a little vinegar. I am tired with this recipe so I searched for a roasted or baked okra recipe and I found the following from Cooktoria.com

HOW TO MAKE BAKED OKRA:

1. Preheat the oven to 450F degrees.

2. Rinse the okra, and dry with a paper towel. Trim away the stem ends, and then cut it into 1/2 to 3/4-inch pieces. Spread the okra on a sheet pan in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil, paprika, salt, and a pinch of cayenne pepper. Stir.

3. Bake the okra for about 15 minutes. The okra should be lightly browned and tender, with a nice seared aroma. Serve immediately.

This is a simple, flavorful, and easy Baked Okra recipe. Seasoned with paprika, salt, and a pinch of cayenne, this okra makes a great snack or side dish.

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh okra
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. paprika
salt to taste
a pinch of cayenne pepper optional

❤ COOKTORIA.COM

Four New Dishes I Really Enjoyed this Week

This is one of the new dishes that I enjoyed this week.

The other day when I was shopping at our local Filipino store and restaurant ( kare-kare and pancit and buko pandan ice cream), I saw the above package- Bangus( milk fish) Embutido. I have not tasted this before although I am very familiar with standard Embotido made of ground pork. The package was $7.99. The dish was delicious with steam rice and pancit and worth every penny I spent.

Last week three other dishes that Macrine and I enjoyed were Taco de Lengua( Beef Tongue), Taco de Tripa (tripe) and Menudo con Pata ( Tripe soup with pig's feet). The above three dishes I purchased from our local Mexican restaurant. I highly recommend that you have to taste the above three dishes if you have the chance. Order the dishes from an authentic Mexican restaurant ( Not Mexican-American or Texan)

The Menudo dish I modify by adding garbanzo beans and tomato sauce to simulate my favorite Pinoy recipe. In this restaurant, their fish taco is also out of this world. The fish is cut in small cubes and highly seasoned with a very mild fishy smell. It is better than the fish Taco I have tasted in San Diego, California.

Our local Mexican Restaurant ( Tres Hermanos) offered several meat choices for their taco or burrito dishes. Besides the Carne Asada( beef steak) or Pollo Asado( grilled chicken), you could have Al Pastor( BBQ Pork), Chile Verde(Green Chili Pork), Tripitas( Beef tripe), Chorizo ( Mexican sausage), Lengua ( Beef Tongue) and Buche (Pig stomach). I have tasted all of the above meat offerings on my tacos/burritos except for the Buche.

Cooking Chile Relleno and Casserole Stuffed with Seafoods

There are several recipes in the web on how to cook Chile Relleno and Casserole. I have my owned recipe of chile relleno and casserole using fresh Poblano peppers stuffed with either shrimps or Crab/lobster meat. It is essentially the same way as in the video below, but instead of just plain Monterey Jack cheese, I add either shrimps ( precooked) or crab or lobster (Shredded - imitation is OK) to the stuffing.

There are several sauces you can used. Since I am lazy, I just used Picante Sauce all ready to use. My daughter used Cholula Sauce. Cholula hot sauce is a brand of chili-based hot sauce, manufactured in Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico, and licensed by José Cuervo. According to its manufacturers, Cholula hot sauce rates 500-1,000 on the Scoville scale though other sources measure it as being over three times hotter, at 3,600 Scoville units.

There are several videos in the Web on how to cook Chile Rellenos and Casserole. The following video is easy to follow: